1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to the cleansing of contaminated soils, and, more particularly, to an apparatus and method for removing hydrocarbons from soils.
2. Background
Oil is a complex mixture of hydrocarbons and small amounts of other substances and is found in many places in the upper strata of the earth. Wells are drilled for these deposits and oil is produced. There are elaborate transport systems for the oil, including pipelines, that criss-cross the country. Transport systems also include huge ocean-going oil tankers for carrying the oil. It is inevitable that there will be an occasional spill or leakage of oil onto water or land. The oil spilled onto land directly contaminates the land, while the oil spilled onto water usually washes ashore contaminating beach areas. One of the most well known oil spills is the Kuwait oil disaster created during the course of the Persian Gulf War in 1991.
Efforts have been made to limit the damage of oil spills to the environment, it being necessary to clean-up oil spills as expeditiously as possible. The invention disclosed and claimed herein includes an apparatus and method for removing hydrocarbons from soils contaminated by such spills. The invention may be practiced at the spill site, immediately returning cleaned soil to the environment.